3/4 say there is BBQ, so maybe it means something else in Pennsylvania.
As for the brisket, I noticed immediately there was no smoke ring. After many years, I finally am consistent, which is the key. Smoking does out a ring around the meat. There was also the lack of bark. I follow low/slow and my bark has been called meat candy. Brisket is the best meat when properly cooked in a smoker.
Did they cook it in a smoker? It could be. Lack of smoke ring COULD indicate low humidity an/or low oxygen level in the fire. If fuel is smoldering (not smoking), you get no ring. I don't know how they cook it for sure. I just know for sure it's not like how I make it or am used to .
All that said to say this... While their brisket can't compare to my super secret, best in the entire world recipe, it doesn't mean it's bad. In fact it's good!
I can make brisket to competition tenderness which is not tender enough for my liking. It's not tender enough. Their brisket is TOO tender. No one wants melt in your mouth brisket... in a competition. I like tender. The meat is stand alone good, which is the real test. Sauce is a cover for a bad run.
On that point, the HOT hot sauce is HOT! Not for the weak. I have to try everything to give an opinion. The Hot hot sauce made my head sweat, tongue burn and I may have cried a little. Not really that big of a deal. 3 glasses of milk, rice pudding, Powerade, tapioca pudding, a little sandpapering my tongue and all is well. :-)
Baked potato, be hungry or prepared to eat it for 2 days. We did it "all the way" and they're great. The only place for a negative is the bacon bits. I like real. Next time, I'll have them hold the bacon bits and out my own on it.
Judging a restaurant on HOW they cook and not the quality seems as arbitrary as judging a restaurant based on the color apron the cook wears. There is no merit to either critique.
Look, just go there. Expect it to take a while when they run out and have to cook your food fresh. You want quick, go elsewhere. Quality takes time. I'd rather have a mom and pop BBQ over fast food. I've never had a conversation about something I've gotten from a fast food joint, but this place is now in my stories. read more
